NOTE: I DO NOT OWN RWBY OR GUILD WARS & SPOILERS FOR PATH OF FIRE (YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED)
Dark skies crackling with purple lightning, Branded running amok in the once beautiful and prosperous Domain of Vabbi; that's what the former commander of the pact, Dragon Slayer, and soon-to-be God Slayer saw while riding through.
Anxiety gnawed at his mind as he rushed through the remains of buildings, torn asunder thanks to the elder dragon, Kralkatorrik. His own dragon, or rather, Glint's legacy and daughter, Aurene, was in a dire situation. She was being used to power a weapon made by that lunatic Balthazar to kill said elder dragon.
'I hope she's hasn't been hurt. That madman, and his machine-' His thoughts were interrupted by the distinct laughing ofsaid madman, and the all-too-familiar whining of a certain crystalline dragon he had been entrusted with. He pushed his thoughts down and gripped the reigns of his raptor harder, pushing his reptilian steed to its limit.
Upon reaching the peak of the repurposed pyramid Balthazar had commandeered, he dismounted his raptor, petting it before sending it away from the area.
'This may be the last time I see you friend, for I don't know how this will end.' The Hero thought, commanding the raptor to leave. It obeyed, sadly, whimpering before running back the way they two had came. He and that raptor had become close, spending almost every waking moment in Desert together.
He silenced any inner monologue that could have happened, opting to focus on the task at hand. He approached the fallen god and his horrid contraption.
"Impossible, I ended you!" Balthazar roared as his gaze fell from the elder dragon in the distance, to the once dead Hero, who he personally slew.
"I'm here to free Aurene from that thing." The hero shouted, readying the sword he had been entrusted by Rytlock to use against the fallen god.
"You have taken advantage of Grenth's absence to escape the Domain of the Lost, but your resurrection is over!" Balthazar bellowed, wordlessly commanding his machine to send the commander back the realm which he escaped.
The machine, holding Aurene captive as its power source, engaged the commander with mechanical fervor, intent on completing its task. It went through a variety of attacks the commander dodged, from pinches of it's massive pincers to tail slams. He retaliated with his own attacks, wounding the soulless tool of war.
As the machine was nearing death, or what the Hero could assume was it's equivalent to death, it collapsed. Purple crystals erupting from its joints, the armored carapace covering its body burning to a blackened state and contorting. It stood once more, a second wind revitalizing it. It purged itself of the crystals and began fighting again, albeit slower. The Hero dodged and evading attacks from the machine, as well as Kralkatorrik who joined the battle.
The machine didn't last too long after it's second wind, collapsing once more and sending it's limbs sprawling or detaching from the main body completely. Aurene was freed from the machine, but somewhat weak, staying put on the back of the machine.
"Looks like your giant wind-up toy wasn't built to last." The Hero jeered, much to the displeasure of the war god.
"Your joy confounds me. Do you think this is over?" Balthazar asked, materializing his greatsword.
"The scion is mine. The dragon is near death. You will not keep me from my destiny!" Balthazar proclaimed, plunging his sword into the top of the pyramid. A circle of flames ignited, making a wall to keep both combatants from deserting the glorious battle.
"So, the commander of the Dragon's Watch Guild..." Balthazar started, swinging his sword overhead into the ground, sending flames at the Hero.
"...now stands alone..." Balthazar stopped as he plunged his sword into the ground again, releasing three waves of fire towards the Hero, who evaded.
"...against the God of War..." He continued, sending swathes of fire in the direction of the Hero, who was pushed further into using defensive tactics whilst waiting for an opening to strike.
"...with nothing but a sword..." There was his opening. Balthazar raised his greatsword to strike, telegraphing his open flanks.
"...and the belief that-GAH!" The god gasped as he found the sword stabbed into his side. This did not mark the end of the battle, moreover, marked the beginning of one brutal duel. The god retaliated with a backhand that sent the Hero and his sword flying to the edge of the arena. The Hero lifted himself back up, grabbed the sword, wiped the blood from his now cut lip, and charged the god.
They exchanged blow after blow, both showing signs of injury. Balthazar's slightly limped stature from being stabbed in a multitude of areas, and the Hero's ragged looking armor and body, suffering from burns and slashes.
"AARGH, This has gone on long enough!" Balthazar shouted. Soon after, molten chains sprang up from the pyramid itself and ensnared the Hero.
"Kralkatorrik's magic will be MINE!" He raised his sword, poised to impale the Hero.
But that never happened.
Running to his aide, a now recuperated Aurene freed him from the chains and pushed him out of the way, with both landing unceremoniously on the ground.
"Aurene! Glad to see you in one piece. Let's keep it that way." The Hero said, getting up and turning his attention from her, back to Balthazar.
"Stay close, and let's coordinate our attacks." The Hero told her. She gave a small purr of confirmation and stood by his side. While she was freeing the Hero, Balthazar had put up a shield of flames to protect himself from the three trying to kill him, counting the elder dragon.
Aurene and the Hero both knew they had to break that shield before either of them could do meaningful damage. Without a single word being spoken, they both sprang into a plan to bring it down. The Hero got his attention with a few stabs and slices at his shield, while Aurene moved fast on his flanks.
Aurene let out a jet of azure and white flames from her mouth, decimating the shield, and leaving Balthazar in a stunned state.
Quickly, the Hero capitalized on this and attacked, landing powerful blows on Balthazar's body, drawing blood forth and onto the ground.
"GRRAH, Why won't you die and be done with it?!" He asked, swinging his sword in wide arcs, hoping to slice off the head of the Hero and his dragon companion's.
"Impudent newt! You're of no use to me dead, but half dead will work." Balthazar said darkly, readying his sword once more.
Magical energy was accumulating in the sword by the second, the tip of it glowing an ethereal white.
'No doubt that will cause some serious damage to me, or Aurene.' The Hero thought, eyeing the blade wearily. Aurene had found herself behind Balthazar yet again, ready to unleash another jet of blue flames. With a nod from the Hero, she let loose flames that caused heavy damage to his armor, throwing him off balance and stunning him yet again.
The Hero charged to meet the god, slashing diagonally up his chest, piercing his armor and releasing more blood.
"Useless stump of a dragon, you're becoming a nuisance!" He shouted, seding walls of flames at the Aurene, in an attempt to incapacitate her. This failed, as she used her wings to fly over them or evade the attack all together.
Seeing as attacking the dragon was fruitless, he directed his anger back at the Hero, who stood ready for his wrath. And thus he delivered.
Attack much more powerful than he had previously used, burst forward from his sword. Torrents of fire surrounded the mock arena, cutting Aurene off from the Hero.
Seeing as he now had better odds, Balthazar started constricting the arena. As it became smaller and smaller, the got closer and closer, leaving little room for error on both sides. Balthazar went to raise his sword overhead, as it seemed. The Hero acted accordingly, ready to stick at his exposed flanks… Until he fainted the overhand strike and leveled the sword with the Hero. With a mighty roar and unrivaled fury, she swung and connected with the Hero, sending him flying through the wall of flames meant to keep him inside with the god.
"You cannot win. The gods have abandoned this world... Abandoned you." Balthazar said, walking out of the the flame arena.
The Hero gripped the sword, anger and fear taking hold of his soul as Balthazar walked towards him, sword in hand, ready to slay him a second time.
"No… They abandoned you!" The Hero shouted, Balthazar mere feet in front of him. The god hadn't expected him to get back up, caught with an open guard that would be his downfall. The Hero pierced his chest piece, heart, and backplate. With a shout of rage, he pushed harder, toppling them over, and pinning Balthazar though the chest into the top of the pyramid. Balthazar stared blankly at the mortal, mouth agape with horror before he screamed in agony. His right hand crackling in a mixture of fire and static, exploded. This caused a chain reaction all over his body, armor and flesh exploding into brilliant displays of flames and electricity.
His body, failing to hold in his own power, began to falter, losing it's physical properties. He stood one last time, and crossed his arms, or what was left of them, over his chest in a last ditch effort to postpone his departure. This didn't work, and he knew it wouldn't.
With a final act of vengeance, he directed the power that resided in him at the Hero, hoping to take him down with him.
"I REFUSE TO BE THE ONLY ONE TO DIE!" He screamed, letting go of all of the magic he had.
The Hero, wounded and slow, tried his best to evade the attack, but failed. The attack hit him, wild magic surrounding his body until there was nothing. Not even a fledgling of his existence remained. The god died, content with the fate the Hero had met.
Aurene, on the other hand, had become a conduit for the now masterless energy that filled the air. The energy rushed into her, speeding up her growth process and catapulting her from a juvenile dragon to a more adult form, increasing her size and speed. The sudden influx of magic rattled her brain, as a mix of emotions and instincts swirled in her skull. She took flight, leaving the arena.
Kralkatorrik being the last standing entity of the battle, absorbed all the magic Aurene had not, fully awakening. He disappeared from the pyramid, under the veil of the Brandstorms that perpetually raged in the desert.
Tyria's prized defender, leader of the Dragon's Watch Guild, disappeared without a trace…
Or did he?
Holy moly, I finally got around to re-writing this story. Sorry this has taken like, two years, I'm a lazy shit. On top of having severe writer's block. But hey, I'm back now, and thank you to those who followed/ favorited the story in it's early days. With that out of the way, here's to more chapters and regular updated and not cringy writing and spelling errors! Hurrah!
Seeya peeps next time!
~Skully
